text:
Major changes loom for Canucks
Major changes loom after the Vancouver Canucks, who came within a victory of winning the Stanley Cup two years ago, bowed out early for the second consecutive spring.
Management is trying to figure out what went wrong in the playoffs for a team that viewed itself as a strong contender, but never approached its target. Instead, the Canucks were swept by San Jose in the opening round.
General manager Mike Gillis decided not to make any major moves following last year's five-game loss to the Los Angeles Kings. Gillis thought the club was close to returning to the Stanley Cup finals, but the humiliating sweep by the Sharks likely means that, as players have acknowledged, the window of opportunity is closing quickly and bold moves are inevitable.
The Canucks have lost 10 of their last 11 playoff games dating to the 2010-11 finals.
"It's frustrating," goaltender Cory Schneider said in San Jose following Tuesday's 4-3 overtime loss. "This seems like a lost year. You don't get that many opportunities to play in the Stanley Cup playoffs and to miss one or two, it's pretty frustrating."
There is no guarantee Gillis will get the chance to do a redesign. His future and those of coach Alain Vigneault, Vancouver's veteran core and, as usual, goaltender Roberto Luongo, are all in question. The Canucks hope to avoid a freefall with NHL realignment, tougher divisional opponents, and a reduced salary cap looming.
Vigneault, the franchise leader in wins, could be a scapegoat. The Canucks were not able to counteract San Jose's potent power play in the playoffs, and he failed at getting secondary offensive players who were inconsistent at best in the regular season to start generating goals at the most pressure-packed time of the year.
San Jose outscored Vancouver 15-8 in the series, and the Sharks converted on seven of 24 power plays. The Canucks produced two power-play goals on 10 opportunities.
The lack of offense has coincided with the team's inability to develop new scoring talent in an era when young stars are emerging throughout the NHL. In five seasons at the helm, only one Gillis draft pick – Cody Hodgson, since traded – has become an NHL regular.
Jordan Schroeder, Vancouver's first choice (22nd overall in 2009), split this season between the NHL and the minors after spending his first two pro campaigns exclusively in the AHL. He was not used in the playoffs and has yet to prove he can become a Vancouver regular let alone a top producer.
Zack Kassian, the player acquired from Buffalo for Hodgson, has struggled to live up to his billing as a prototypical power forward who can score.
The Canucks must ensure that more of their draft picks figure prominently on the roster. The NHL salary cap drops to $64.3 million next season, and chances to sign a high-end free agent will become more difficult.
One way to enable more home-grown prospects to reach the NHL is to stockpile draft choices through trades, and the Canucks have a number of veteran assets that could attract a decent price on the market. Vancouver showed a need for more size and grit, as well as offensive skill, among its top nine forwards after losing many one-on-one battles, allowing the Sharks to move the puck out of their end with relative ease.
Except for Daniel and Henrik Sedin and Alex Burrows, no forward appears likely to be spared consideration for a new hockey home. But the Sedins' future with the team will also be in question, because they are slated to enter the final year of their contracts in 2013-14.
With the Canucks at the top of the old salary cap and a new one pending, changes also appear inevitable for financial reasons. Luongo, slated for a $5.3 million salary cap hit next season, is an obvious candidate to leave, via trade or buyout – a year later than planned. But the Canucks could also consider moving one of their top-four defensemen, who will all earn $4 million to $5 million next season.
But before commencing with changes, management and players will have to get over the sting of being swept for the first time in 12 years.
"This is the most frustrating team I've been a part of," said Daniel Sedin. "We have a good team and what cost us? Little mistakes, taking penalties. We have ourselves to blame."
His controversial boarding penalty on Tommy Wingels in overtime led to Patrick Marleau's winning goal in Game 4.
"This year, this is not the way we wanted to end," said Henrik Sedin. "It was almost like we were a first-time playoff team going to the box too many times."
The Canucks captain lamented another lost opportunity to win a Stanley Cup, realizing that the club's core is nearing the end of its days together.
"A lot of guys have been together for a long time," he said. "It's very disappointing, because you only have so many chances."


text:
Skip to comments.Wife kills member of Penn's '79 Final Four team
Posted on 02/12/2013 2:32:39 PM PST by ConservativeStatement
A member of the University of Pennsylvania's 1979 Final Four team was fatally stabbed by his wife, who told police she had caught him looking at child pornography, according to court documents.
Matthew White was found stabbed in the neck around 12:45 p.m. Monday in bed at his home, police said, and was pronounced dead a short time later. An officer responding to the home for a report of a stabbing found White's wife, Maria Rey Garcia-Pellon, as she pulled into the driveway, authorities said. As she was being taken into custody, according to a police affidavit, she said, "I caught him looking at pornography, young girls. I love kids. I had to do it."
(Excerpt) Read more at csnphilly.com ...
Source should be: STATS LLC and Associated Press.
They still make Law & Order: SVU. This is a perfect story for it!
If a husband kills his wife, it is the man's fault.
If a wife kills her husband, it is the man's fault.
And yes, a lib once told me that.
This is flat-out first degree murder.
Or Pennsylvania!
She is one cold hearted bitch.... Stabbed him after he went to sleep...
She is 52 years old and saw her husband looking at porn.... Supposedly child porn....
Betcha dollars to donuts it was regular old porn...which is mostly very young adult girls...
Menopause defense....I see it coming....
If it was actual child porn.... He got everything he deserves...
Guilty! Guilty! Guilty!
Perhaps she over-reacted, due to wanting to NOT be like Jerry Sandusky's wife....
Very much like a brain teaser that was going around some years ago:
There is a man and a woman.
One of them is naked, doing jumping jacks in front of a big pictgre window.
The other is standing on the sidewalk and watching.
The cops come and arrest one of them.
Which one?
He's NOT GUILTY!
Has anybody seen a picture of him? I'd bet he's "guilty" too (that is, ugly).
That said, if this guy was looking at child porn, she should have called the police. It's hard for wives to do that, but I have known some cases where they have done so. And it's less messy than stabbing him.
The owner of the window company for not installing proper protection? /sarc.
She looks craaazyyy.
It'll take the cops half-an-hour to review his computer history, then review the sites. My humble guess is that she will be taken into court and charged with murder at the end. Pretty bad way to go for the guy.
Her looks alone could be fatal to a man.
It's possible she set him up too, computer history and all.
Maybe she planned to blame the murder on Christopher Dorner's rage against basketball players and the plan fell through when he got cornered at Big Bear.
That was the year of the classic Michigan State - Indiana State Magic Johnson - Larry Bird championship game.
Here's Matt White (the white guy) back in the day:
And here's him and the murderous wife recently:
S**ks getting old ...
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Hook & Ladder
The Next Generation of Russian River Valley Wines
On 375 acres situated in Sonoma County's Russian River Valley, our vineyards produce cool climate grapes widely recognized as some of the finest in the world. Grape growers of the early 1900's recognized the sites of our vineyards as being uniquely suited for wine grape growing. Building on their knowledge and experience, we have matched the soil and climate of each parcel with the varietals most likely to achieve its full potential.


text:
Part to Part Ratios Using Tape Diagrams and Tables
Lesson 2 of 13
Objective: SWBAT represent a ratio using a tape diagram and a ratio table to determine the value of a part given the value of the other part
Big Idea: There are multiple ways to represent proportional relationships and reason about solutions to problems.
Think About It
Students work independently on the Think About It problem. The problem starts by having students practice what they learned in the previous lesson. It then has students extend their thinking, by asking them to apply the rate to an equivalent ratio. After 3 minutes of work time, I have students share out how they tried to figure out the number of Wilson racquets in the last part of this problem. Some students will create equivalent fractions, while others will draw models.
As we conclude this warmup, I frame the lesson by letting students know that we will be using two models in this lesson - tape diagrams and tables.
Resources (1)
Resources (1)
Intro to New Material
In this lesson, students will use a tape diagram or a ratio table to solve for a given value by making equivalent ratios until they find an equivalent ratio pair.
In all of the problems in this lesson, we will use an additive relationship. Some students are able to make the jump to a multiplicative relationship, but in this lesson I want students to physically build out the diagrams. In future lessons, we will just represent the given ratio and then create an equivalent ratio, but here we stay concrete.
To start the introduction of new material, I model how to create a tape diagram for the Think About It problem. You can see the problem solved step by step. The steps that I follow:
- Write the given units separately.
- Next to the first unit, draw however many equally sized boxes represent the first part of the ratio.
- Next to the second unit, draw however many boxes represent the second part of the ratio (keeping them exactly the same size as the unit above).
- Decide what the known term of the second ratio is. Decide how many groups of the given ratio you would need to add to get to that term. Draw them next to the given ratio boxes.
- However many groups you made of the first term, make that many groups of the second term also drawing the boxes.
- Count the boxes for the unknown part of the ratio. Include units.
Students help me create the tape diagram for the first problem in the Intro to New Material. For the second problem, I guide students to create a ratio table.
Resources (2)
Students work in pairs on the Partner Practice problems. As they work, I circulate around the room. I am looking for:
- Are students correctly identifying the terms and putting them in the correct order?
- Are students correctly identifying the proportional relationship?
- Are students correctly filling in all of the equivalent ratios?
- Are students using the model that the problem asks for?
- Are students drawing tape diagrams correctly (equally sizes boxes, etc.)?
I am asking:
- How did you know what the relationship was?
- How did you know what the rest of the ratios would be?
- What does your ratio represent?
I pay close attention to the organization of the tape diagrams. If students do not line up their boxes, they may lose track of what they need to draw. I created an example of the potential mistake.
After 10 minutes of partner work time, students work independently on the final check for understanding problem. I have one student who feels confident about his/her tape diagram share his/her work on the document camera. I then have one student who feels confident about his/her ratio table share his/her work on the document camera.
Resources (2)
Independent Practice
Students work on the Independent Practice problem set. As they work, I circulate around the room and I look for and ask the same questions I used during the partner practice.
Students need to annotate and take care to organize their work. A Student Sample is included here.
Resources (2)
Closing and Exit Ticket
After 15 minutes of independent work time, I bring the class back together for a conversation. We discuss Problem_7 from the Independent Practice problem set. This problem can be difficult for students because it involves the repeated addition of a fraction. Strategies that students share may include converting the fraction to a decimal, adding 2 1/2 repeatedly in the margin, or drawing pictures.
Students work independently on the Exit Ticket to end the lesson.


text:
AWF has named four Charlotte Conservation Fellows for 1999--2000. The fellows program was founded in 1996 in memory of Charlotte Kidder Ramsay, an AWF supporter who believed deeply in encouraging young African professionals to work in conservation. This year's Charlotte Fellows include:
Preserving the remarkable wildlife of Africa depends upon many hundreds, indeed thousands, of acts of charity from individuals and support from foundations and governments.
Such help is the lifeblood that enables groups like AWF to act, and every gift and every grant is important. Thus it is with some trepidation that I single out one particular contribution of the last year for the lesson it contains. This modest grant, from the U.S. Agency for International Development, supports a project known mainly by its acronym: ABCG (the African Biodiversity Collaborative Group).
(African Wildlife News - Winter 2000)
Because migrating wildlife in this region often cross national boundaries, the Amboseli-Longido Heartland straddles the border of two countries. It encompasses Amboseli National Park and ranch lands in Kenya and, to the south, the lower slopes of Mt. Kilimanjaro and the semi-arid savannas of Longido in Tanzania. Much of the region is home to Masai pastoralists who tend their cattle on dusty plains shared with zebra, buffalo, giraffe and the world's most stable and storied elephant population.
Southern Africa is richly endowed with wildlife. AWF increasingly is collaborating with parks and conservationists in South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe and other countries in the region to help protect their priceless resources.
Much of this Heartland embraces mountainous rain forests and beautiful crater lakes in the adjoining countries of the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda and Uganda. The region has been caught up in recent years in human battles that have not only taken a severe toll on people but have continuously threatened the mountain gorillas and other rare species living there.


text:
The official national debt is currently racing toward $17 trillion, and the Congressional Budget Office is projecting another $10 trillion over the next decade, but monetary and currency expert Andrew Gause warns the real amount of red ink will be much worse.
Gause, author of "The Secret World of Money" and "Uncle Sam Cooks the Books," said the Congressional Budget Office is often conservative in its debt projections and that could mean a whole lot more than $10 trillion over the next decade.
"They've been way low and, unfortunately, it's the CBO that tell us that by 2023 the national debt will be around $26 trillion," Gause told WND. "If that is one of their historically conservative projections, that number can be off by as much as 50 percent. We could really be up in the mid-30s to $40 trillion in debt by 2023."
Here it is! The plan to stop Washington's borrowing spree in 2013. It will take only 218 House Republican votes to stop the borrowing this year. Find out how YOU can help make it happen.
In addition to the mounting debt, Gause is very worried about the impact of inflation caused by the Federal Reserve's frequent injection of new money into the economy. He said there are three factors that trigger high inflation, and we're seeing all of them in effect right now.
First is an increase in the money supply, and Gause noted that the Federal Reserve has quadrupled the money supply over the past four years. He said there also must be an uptick in demand, with factories getting back to full capacity and employment picking up again.
The final factor is what he calls "monetary velocity," when people start spending money again.
"Those three (factors) could combine to provide the biggest bout of inflation we've ever seen in this nation, let alone comparing it to that last run from '77-'80," Gause said.
Gause said he finds himself "somewhere in between" liberals who insist they've cut spending as much as possible and deficit hawks who say our debt plus unfunded liabilities has us so far in debt that any recovery is hopeless. He said two budgeting tactics give him the most heartburn.
"The only bills that they have to reveal to us are those that are due in the next couple years. Anything that's due in outlying years doesn't exist, according to the government's budget," said Gause, who also finds it appalling that revenues received from Social Security taxes are thrown into the general budget and spent on anything and everything.
So what is his solution? Gause believes a lot of progress could be made simply by following through on Ron Paul's persistent goal of auditing the Federal Reserve, if the data revealed in conjunction with the Toxic Asset Relief Program, or TARP, is any guide.
"The data dump that the Fed revealed as a condition of this bailout revealed quite a bit in terms of insider dealing. The loans to the Bank of Libya. We were told they were a state enemy. We were not supposed to be trading with them, but yet we have our Federal Reserve Bank making them loans," Gause said. "Then the insider loans to the members and their wives, the owners of the banks and their wives. All of this was revealed in that data dump that the Fed made in response to the TARP bailout law. I think an audit of the Fed would reveal the inconsistencies and the self-dealing that goes on, and the bankers are making billions of dollars in profits from their ownership of the Federal Reserve system."


text:
Book Tour and Activities on the Go!
About the Activity:
Open the windows and get caressed by the soothing breeze! Step out of the room and feel embraced by the swaying views of the lush thickets surrounding the homestay in Chikmagalur! While relaxing in the Hill Top Homestay in Chikmagalur, have a tryst with the gorgeous mountains and the charming ambience of the 'Land of Coffee'.
Surrounded by scenic estates with the Ballalarayanadurga Hill as the backdrop, this homestay in Chikmagalur serves as an ideal escapade for domestic as well as international travellers. Be it the families travelling with or without their kids, couples yearning for pleasant moments, corporate guests or the groups of friend and backpackers, this holiday home is ideal for all!
During the stay, the guests can have plenitude of fun-filled and exciting moments at Hill Top Homestay. With rope activities, sightseeing around the homestay and several others, the stay in this leisure home becomes an exciting affair.
About the Stay :
Note : 24 hour Check In and Check Out time. Timings would be as per the convenience of the customer.
Image Credits: gateway.tajhotels.com
About the Activity
Ask a Question
Ask Question


text:
Kathryn Hutchings
|Assistant Director of Recreation
|Fourth Year at SCU
Kathryn Hutchings is in her third year at Santa Clara. She joined the Department of Athletics and Recreation staff at Santa Clara University August, 10, 2011.
Hutchings' responsibilities include coordinating lifetime fitness programs, club sports, intramural sports and the annual Bronco Kidz All Sports Camp.
Previous to her current position, Kathryn served as the Event and Intramural Coordinator for the Office of Physical Education Recreation and Sports at UC Santa Cruz.
Hutchings graduated in 1999 from Humboldt State University with a bachelor's degree in Recreation and Business.
Over the past 10 years she has worked at various institutions managing intramurals, club sports, youth programs, facility scheduling and event management. She was the Assistant Director of Recreation at Fort Lewis College, the Coordinator of Club Sports at the University of Rhode Island, the Advisor of Intramurals, Club Sports, and Youth Programs at Western Washington University, and the Events and Intramural Coordinator at UCSC.
She is a Bay Area native from Monterey, Calif.


text:
BERKLEY, Michigan -- A group of Berkley High School students spent a couple of hours Wednesday eating live and cooked bugs to raise money for land conservation.
Peter Hoch, a senior, has been a member of the Wilderness Survival Club at the school since he was a freshman and still remembers the first bug he ever ate.
"It was a cricket," he recalled. "It was great. The cricket was cooked plain and it tasted salty and crunchy, sort of like fried chicken skin."
Shawn Grose, a science teacher who is the advisor to the student wilderness club, said the eight students who participated in this year's Bug-A-Thon are raising money for the Southeast Michigan Land Conservancy.
"The reaction of the students eating bugs ranges from complete disgust to, 'That's not too bad,'" Grose said. "Nobody has ever actually thrown up."
The bug menu at Wednesday's fundraiser included everything from beetle larva, called super worms, to meal worms and crickets.
Some of the worms were cooked and put on pizza, Grose said.
"It's hard to keep a live cricket on a pizza," he added.
Some of the bugs were seasoned and fried to make them crispy.
Grose has joined in every year to eat bugs with the students since their survival club began eight years ago. He also teaches wilderness survival at the high school.
"Eating the bugs teaches you to operate outside your comfort zone," he said. "It tests you when you have to survive on what mother nature offers. It's not meant to be a 'Fear Factor' sort of thing."
Students aren't forced to do anything they don't want to do and tend to see eating bugs as a personal challenge they would need to meet if they had to survive in the wild.
The students who scarfed down worms and insects got pledges from supporters to raise money, with all proceeds going to the Southeast Michigan Land Conservancy.
The land conservancy is a nonprofit group dedicated to the preservation of natural land in the region. The group was founded 24 years ago by people who wanted to protect open spaces where they lived, according to the group's website.
A three-person staff manages daily operations for the conservancy, which is chiefly composed of volunteers. The group maintains and cares for land held in its trust with regular monitoring and stewardship projects. They also work to educate the public about land conservation.


text:
The Phillies' closest competitors in the NL East — the Atlanta Braves and Florida Marlins — tried to enhance their chances to catch the Phillies for the division crown by making some trades today before the 4 PM deadline. The Braves re-acquired Adam LaRoche and the Marlins received Nick Johnson from the Washington Nationals.
Here's a quick look to see if each team should expect improvements heading into the last two months of the regular season. The projection of choice is ZiPS, easily found at FanGraphs on the player pages, and the fielding metric is UZR/150 also found at FanGraphs.
I'll list each player's offensive projections for the rest of the season. That will be followed by their UZR/150 so far this season (defense is hard to project).
Atlanta Braves
- Casey Kotchman: .357 OBP/.436 SLG; 5.8 UZR/150
- Adam LaRoche: .349 OBP/.503 SLG; -3.4 UZR/150
Both Kotchman and LaRoche have been worth two wins above replacement (WAR) since the start of 2008. Kotchman doesn't hit as well as LaRoche, but is a notably better fielder. Overall, the Braves didn't upgrade their team by too much but their offense has been, literally, average (both their RPG average and the league average is 4.43). Adding some offense at the expense of defense is a good idea for a mediocre-hitting team.
Florida Marlins
- Jorge Cantu: .330 OBP/.453 SLG; 0.6 UZR/150
- Nick Johnson: .416 OBP/.450 SLG; -7.8 UZR/150
Like Kotchman and LaRoche, Jorge Cantu and Nick Johnson have been worth exactly the same in WAR this season at 1.2 apiece. Cantu plays about average defense while Johnson has been terrible, negating the huge gap in offense between the two.
The Marlins are a poor-fielding team with a -2.7 UZR/150, so adding a fielder as bad as Johnson isn't going to help the already poor fielders around him. The Fish already had a slightly above-average offense, so this trade is break-even at the most optimistic.
Elsewhere, the Mets added no one besides Jeff Francoeur earlier in the month.
All told, none of the NL East teams made a significant improvement to their teams to make them more of a concern to the Phillies, who added last year's AL Cy Young award winner Cliff Lee. If the Phillies can play .500 baseball the rest of the way, they will be in good shape to win their third straight division title.


text:
- Question? Contact the seller
Item details
This is for 100 small metallic matte Rose gold glass tulip beads. The Size of these small little petite flowers is 5x5mm. Rare color. Made in Republic of Czech.
This bead matches our other leaves and flowers that are in the metallic color
This bead comes in many colors. Number 800. Please look carefully at my pictures, as they are part of my description. This is the smallest glass flower bead that we carry. Thank you for taking your time to look at our Etsy site. Please check back to see what is new in beads, buttons and kits. Mahalo
You might also like
More from this seller
Shipping & policies
Estimated Shipping
NOTE: There is a Price increase of around $4.00 on all International Orders as of 2/2016!!!! Until I can get all my listings updated....I will be asking for whatever your order costs to ship.....and will give you back and extra amount that you may pay on your order!
All items will be mailed out to the address listed on the individual's PAYPAL account or information given to me through e-mail or phone. All addresses must match your credit card or PAYPAL account. I will ship out purchases within 48 hours of confirmed payment, excluding Saturday, Sundays and postal holidays.
I will be using 1st class US Postal Service with a delivery confirmation all orders unless you would like your package to go another way. Flat Rate Boxes are a wonderful way to ship most anything which usually gets to the mainland within 3 to 5 days! I use it all the time with no problem so far. Please let me know if you would like your order to go out Priority Mail or If you are interested in any other types of shipping and insurance..I all so do combined shipping...if you order a lot of different items...I will charge you only what it costs me to ship it with delivery confirmation...and if you would like insurance.... Please contact me before payment so we can arrange the proper fees for your purchase. A Flat Rate Box can hold a lot of beads or kits…and can be as heavy as you like for what ever fits inside the box.
Please NOTE: All Shipping Costs that I do quote on my etsy site are estimates on what I think it will cost depending on the weight of your package. If for any reason your package is over the cost I did quote...you will be responsible to pay the extra amount that is costs to ship your package. I only charge what the post office asks. (Plus the cost of a delivery confirmation) Which is put on ALL packages. If you are charged too much…I will give you a credit back.
Paypal is one of the safest ways for payment and would like all payments to be paid within 48 hours of purchase. We accept all major credit cards through our Etsy site. Both ways are fully safe and reliable.
Please contact me if you need more time to pay or want another color in a certain type or color of bead. I usually carry quite a few colors in each type of bead. I can e-mail you that information if I do not have it up on Etsy yet.
Please look at the policies of etsy.com for more information.
Returns & exchanges
- Custom or personalized orders
- Perishable products (like food or flowers)
- Digital downloads
- Intimate items (for health/hygiene reasons)
- Items on sale
I will not offer an exchange due to the colors of the beads. I try to describe the item the best I can and do have a great camera to let you see the nice colors for you to see whatever it is that I am selling... Beads do come in color lots...so buy enough to complete you project AT THE TIME purchase an item. Some beads and kits could be not available again...they will be labeled limited edition. i do sell beads that I can not ever get again...as they are not making that bead any longer.
Much Aloha from Beautiful Maui, Sarah
Additional policies
I now opened up my etsy site for everyone to buy larger amounts of my Czech and German Glass Beads and Beading Kits. Please let me know how many strands or numbers of what you would like. If I can not fill your order, I will let you know how many strands I do have in stock. If you have paid for them and I am not able to fill your order, I will credit you account right away. Thank you for your understanding.
All Hawaiian residents must pay a 4.167% sales tax unless you provide a State Tax ID and put that information on file with our store.
Pictures of Beads, Jewelry and Kits may look larger in the picture that what they actual are. I am giving you a close up detailed picture....so you can see the design of the bead or color...... I try to come as close as possible to the item that I am selling.
All Jewelry and Hand Made beads are Handmade by me Sarah Klopping and not made in China or a foreign country...they are made in the US. I all ways appreciate the support of those who want to support local or US Artists. All Handmade Glass beads sets are made to be close in appearance to one another, but they are handmade, so there will be subtle differences within the set of beads.
If you are not fully satisfied with your purchase, please look again at our refund policy to see what we need to talk about and work out. I aim to please! Thank you again for visiting my site...I truly hope you visit us again. I will be listing new products each week or daily so please check back again.
Remember that these are my Original Designs that I have been working on for 38 years now in beading..and 18 years in lamp working (making glass beads)......please give credit where credit is due...if my work does inspire you, please let other know about me and my beadstore....that we all may benefit from one another....


text:
Featured News - Current News - Archived News - News Categories
Local residents are invited to stop by the 3F Club, 904 Swann Road, Saturday, Nov. 9, starting at 4 p.m., where the Donovan-Hess benefit will be held to assist victims of a recent fire.
All money and donations collected will go to Matthew and Michelle, who lost their home in a devastating fire that took all their possessions as well as claiming the lives of their two beloved dogs, Bex and Isis. Unfortunately, the family was not covered, so moving on from this tragedy will see them starting from scratch.
Admission to attend the benefit is $20 per person, which includes food, soft drinks and bottled water. The event will also feature a basket raffle, door prizes, 50-50s every hour, a cash bar and entertainment by DJ Sookie, Dave Stayner and Toni Tripi with a special guest appearance by Billy Buffalo from the Buffalo Bills.
The event is kid-friendly and children ages 8 and under will be admitted at no charge.
Organizers noted that all donations are greatly appreciated, and checks can be made payable to: The Matthew Donovan Family Fire Assistance Trust through Bank of America.
For more information, call Ashley at 716-804-2423 or Darleen at 716-478-9489.


text:
Academic Rigor
Dorm Life
Food and Dining
Bang for the buck
Clubs and Activities
Campus Safety
Has plenty of pre-graduate programs, and art programs but it seems to be very expensive reaching over 20 grand for an instate student.
To find more tips for prospective students, what to do for fun and whether this school is great for a particular type of student read the 16 reviews for University of Maine at Farmington
Curious about something that isn't answered here? Feel free to ask University of Maine at Farmington a question
I love this school. The environment of UMF is fantastic. The professors are awesome.Read More
UMF is a great place for students that enjoy a modern and diverse lifestyle. There are many different kinds of people here, some from as far away as California and many foreign exchange students. The community and the professors are very supportive and caring.Read More
Everything you need is nearby. Teachers are passionate and supportive. The dining hall is unhelpful.Read More
Amazing, top of the line education. Up and coming in the way of facilities. Everyone is eager to help you succeed.Read More
UMF is a nice small town college, the activities that happen on campus are usually to help you with your major. There is always someone that can answer your question. It is also a friendly town.Read More
You can receive a well-round education here, whomever you are. Classes are small, and professors work hard to remember names. Overall cost of attendance is low, comparitively speaking.Read More
This school is VERY Small. It is a good choice if you like very rural areas. The professors are extremely nice, but the classes themselves, I found to be like high school.Read More
The University of Maine at Farmington is a great liberal arts college. They have great faculty and staff as well as student. The campus is so diverse, that you can do just about anything here and it is a lot of fun.Read More
The campus is amazing, you can feel close to nature and isolated, or suburban and connected to the world - depending on where you feel like walking. The teachers care about their students and you can tell, you can stay after class for as long as you want, take them to dinner, lunch, just to keep the conversation going. The classes are intense but you can leave them knowing that you've learned something new every day.Read More
I attended UMF as an Upward Bound student, I found the food to be bland and dreary. The dorms were a hazard(fully enveloped in flame in under 2 minutes.) The people however were unique and kind in typical Maine fashion, I'd highly recommend this campus for anyone pursuing a teaching degree.Read More


text:
That quote from Howard Beale (character in Network, 1976 movie) sums me up right about now. And it's probably just the straw that broke the camel's back, because it's n
Have you ever wondered about the validity of those "special offer magazine subscriptions" you get in your mailbox? As someone who gets most of his magazines for free thro
How many times have you felt like someone was ripping you off? Hopefully, you can trust your gut instincts, just like the guy in this video below.
You can watch the full 7 minutes for yourself, but the basic story is this. [more]
If you thought those Nigerian scammers could not sink any lower, think again. It was reported today by WTAE.TV that there's a new scam making the rounds, and this time the scammers are praying on the good nature of pet lovers.
George Gombossy, consumer watchdog for The Courant , broke this story on March 2nd of this month. It's a great story, and I apologise to George for not stating him as the source in my original post, my bad entirely. [more]
Become a fan
Follow us
Enter your email address to subscribe:


text:
CCIA Slams Congressional Representatives Who Unfairly Attack US Companies For Speaking Up Against SOPA
from the good-for-them dept
The stimulative efforts of our companies in promoting freedom, democracy and more open societies is matched by no other industry in modern times. In the Middle East and around the world tech companies have stuck our necks out to be true to our principles. In contrast, we can think of other industries and companies that have sometimes worked hard to protect themselves and their markets by propping up status-quo repressive regimes.It really is a pretty offensive political smear, considering the widespread opposition to SOPA from all sorts of individuals and companies that have absolutely nothing to do with piracy. Furthermore, even the idea that Google "profits from piracy" is pretty ridiculous. As we've seen from the various cases against sites, these sites make almost no money... and it's extremely unlikely they make money from Google. Most don't even appear to have Google ads, and for those that do, Google only makes money if people click on the ads, and people surfing these so-called "rogue sites" aren't likely to be people clicking on ads.
Our companies have helped the Arab spring evolve and made it more possible for Russians to protest suspect elections. Our companies have sacrificed profits to withdraw from countries that would use our platforms to violate human rights. The most significant example was the costly decision by Google to pull search out of mainland China - the largest Internet market. That voluntary act, taken because of a commitment to principle and concerns about security and free expression was uplifting to many, though mocked by those for whom profit matters above all else.
It is, therefore, especially outrageous to suggest that any of our companies, and especially Google, who are opposed to this immature legislation do so because they greedily want to do business with rogue sites.
We are also proud that 3 of our members, among the largest US Internet companies [Yahoo, Microsoft and Google] have formed the GNI to defend global Internet freedom and condemn filtering and censorship.


text:
BIOL 360 Molecular Cell Biology (1)
A description of signal transduction mechanisms that govern major cell processes: Cell survival, cell differentiation, cell division, and inter- and intracellular communication. Topics include regulation of the cell cycle and tumor biology, hormonal signaling, motile and motor processes, nerve impulse transmission, and pharmaceutical action. Examples drawn from yeast, animal, and plant models. Laboratory focuses on molecular and biochemical methods used to investigate signal transduction. Closed to freshmen.


text:
The 2010 All NL-Central team…if only to give Cardinals fans something to cheer about. That has been my line in years past and it didn't apply then and doesn't now. This is the first year in a long time that I have no confidence in the Cubs to make any noise. Hopefully that will change. […]
Most Popular Bookmaker
Newsletter and Free Picks
NHL News
Recommended Sportsbook
Recent Posts
- NFL Week 9 Preview: Browns @ Texans
- Detroit Lions vs Denver Broncos NFL Week 8
- NFL Preview: New Orleans Saints vs St. Louis Rams
- Packers vs Vikings Betting Picks and Preview
- NFL Week 7: Broncos @ Dolphins Preview
- NFL Week 7: Seahawks @ Browns Preview
- NFL Week 4: Vikings @ Chiefs
- NFL Week 4: Titans @ Browns
- NFL Week 4: Giants @ Cardinals
- Oakland Raiders vs Seattle Seahawks


text:
{{search.results.count}} results {{searchFilter()}} {{searchQuery()}}
{{search.results.count}} results {{searchFilter()}} {{searchQuery()}}
Enter a search term such as "mobile analytics" or browse our content using the filters above.
That's not only a poor Scrabble score but we also couldn't find any results matching
Check your spelling or try broadening your search.
This service is currently undergoing maintenance.
Please try again later.
Author: Andreas Pouros
Digital transformation: What can we learn from Spain's BBVA bank?
UK banks are at a crossroads.
Consumers are increasingly banking online or on mobile, digital services have grown by more than 200% over the last four years, while in-branch footfall is falling 10% per year.
However, attempts to close under-used branches cause outcry, particularly in rural areas and among older customers.
In this post I'll explain why banks must invest in customer experience as wide scale branch closures look inevitable.
Infinite scroll: its impact on SEO and how to fix it
Search engine spiders cannot scroll to the bottom of a page like an ordinary user, trigger the request for more content, and then wait to retrieve it for indexation.
Hence content only accessible via infinite scroll simply won't be seen and therefore won't make it into the respective search engine results listings.
The good news is there are easy solutions so that infinite scroll poses no problem for search, and in fact can also provide an opportunity to maximise user experience and maximise SEO value in tandem.
The ultimate guide to….the 404 status code and SEO
Every page you visit on the Internet will return something called a 'status code', a code consisting of three numbers that communicate to the requester the status of their request for a particular page.
A 404 is ultimately an error message by default and is a very frequent and recognisable message experienced by every single internet user. 404s are not inherently bad, they exist for a very good reason.
Their ambiguous nature however means that search engines (and your users, and your rankings) will often benefit from some direction on what action to take when they come across them. Without this direction and left unmanaged, 404 errors are problematic.
Here are the SEO impacts and the possible solutions...
2013 will be Microsoft's year
2013 will be the year that Microsoft becomes relevant once again.
It will begin to use its dominant position on the desktop and in gaming to build an exciting ecosystem that will make Microsoft a compelling choice for consumers, and by extension an increasingly important advertising partner for marketers.
Building a commercial framework for social media engagement: a four step process
This week I overheard a major social media competitor tell a prospective client: "...well, you can't really measure social media commercially can you? It's like gravity, you know it's there even though you can't see it, so you just have to keep working on it, right?"
I hit the proverbial roof...
Firstly Einstein, (not his real name), you can most definitely measure gravity. And you can also measure the commercial value of social media too, if you engaged a brain cell or two.
Within the context of my obvious agitation with this and the sector in general, I wanted to share how we tackle this in the hope that, in some small way, we can start engaging in social media with a structure and level of respect that it deserves.
What follows therefore is a four step process to build a commercial model for social media engagement, part of a much broader internal framework, but I hope still useful to many of you.
The legal history of Google: infographic
As a firm at the sharp end of information management online, Google pushes the boundaries more than most – and consumers, the press, politicians and the legal world will often push back from the other side.
Progress should be the product of those opposing forces. So here's an infographic charting the legal history of Google from 2003-2011. We at Greenlight will let you decide.
How much of a dent could Facebook make in Google's search business?
With recent news that Google is more forcefully entering the social realm by integrating Google+ into its results, what about Facebook? What impact could it make in search?
While Google and Facebook have a very similar number of users, there is a notable difference in the revenues they extract from their users. Google makes over seven times more money, pulling in $29.3bn a year while expert estimates (Facebook is still privately held) puts Facebook's ad revenue at about $4bn (this year).
Search is, quite simply, the best game in town, commercially speaking.
Three new ways to visualise your SEO performance
SEO practitioners don't typically share their operational methods. Our sector is reliant on gaining competitive advantage through hoarding methods and techniques for just long enough to benefit from them, and then sharing them to gain some love and respect as a bonus.
This also extends to methods for displaying SEO data and visualising performance. For instance, search agencies never willingly allow their reports to be seen by their competitors.
Therefore, I want to break rank somewhat and present three interesting ways to display SEO data and information, methods that I've not seen others use out there and that are increasingly becoming standards within my own companies.
TV and search: associative marketing in a two-screen world
Everyone is aware of product placement, the deliberate incorporation of a product or brand into a movie, television episode or other media vehicle to promote it to the viewing audience, typically in a subtle way to create affinity and recognition over time.
However, there's more to product placement than simply placing a Papa John's pizza box in clear view in a major sitcom.
From a marketer's perspective that is only one facet of how what appears on TV can impact on what consumers then think about and do, and it isn't limited to just brand placement, recognition and recall either.
Clients get the (search) advertising they deserve
David Ogilvy once said 'clients get the advertising they deserve'.
Having been COO of a search agency for each of the last 10 years, I can tell you with some authority that Ogilvy's quote is as true in the digital specialisms of SEO, PPC and Social Media as it is in the broader advertising discipline.
Social proof for digital marketers: a primer
Bar staff and subway buskers will routinely 'seed' their tips jars and guitar cases with some change so that passers by think that contributing is what is expected and are then compelled to do so themselves.
Can online marketers tap into this same psychology?
How online marketers can adapt to the weather
The weather in 2010 made front-page news across much of the planet. Washington's storms caused power outages, NYC endured insufferable heat, and the UK was brought to its knees by snow.
With retailers reflecting on their 2010 performance, the effect of the weather on online sales and how marketers can respond is worthy of investigation.


text:
X-Win32 software can be checked out from CU340 for on campus use. For off campus use X-Win32 can be purchased from Starnet.
XDMCP mode can be used when you are in MSCS network or you have obtained a valid Marquette Network IP using VPN.
NOTE: XP users if you still cannot connect to pascal, you probably have the internal firewall enabled and need to follow the steps below.
SSH mode can be used when you are outside of MSCS network.
First, you need to make sure port forwarding is enabled on the router to send all packets to port 6000 on your computer. Different routers have different methods to accomplish this. For example, if you have a wireless 2.4G Linksys router, you can launch the administration page by pointing to http://192.168.1.1, click Advanced, then IP Forwarding, then forward port 6000 to your computer. Check the instruction manual for your router on how to do this.
Second, you need to set up the display. Go to X-Config, located under X-Win32 in the start -> programs menu, click on Display and choose proxy. A window will pop up asking for the proxy IP address, which is the public address of your router. To find the public address of your router, go to the find your IP address website.
If the above steps are done correctly you should be able to successfully connect to pascal.


text:
'IT STILL looks messy." A student is heckling illustrator Craig Smith as he whips up a remarkable charcoal drawing of Billy the Punk, a character he illustrated for a popular children's book.
Mr Smith laughs and applies finishing touches. He enjoys interacting with young readers at schools such as St Brendan's Primary School.
He has visited about 30 schools this year, but at this Catholic primary school in Flemington he has an important mission – to act as a role model for Books in Homes, a program that provides children from disadvantaged backgrounds with nine books to take home each year.
"Primary schools are optimistic, warm places. It's been fantastic to talk about drawing by drawing, and by getting out to schools you get a snapshot of what children like," he says.
By doing so he has also seen first-hand how many children miss out when it comes to learning to read. St Brendan's is a small school, with 170 students from diverse backgrounds, including Sudan, Vietnam, Ethiopia, China and East Timor.
In some cases parents speak limited English and may come from places with an oral rather than written tradition. This means there are often no books at home, with some children starting school without ever having picked up a book, or having had one read to them.
New Zealand author Alan Duff, best known for Once Were Warriors – an award-winning novel that explored the issues of domestic violence and alcoholism in the poorest suburbs of Auckland – decided to establish a literacy program after visiting a school where most children came from book-less homes and did not read much. Mr Duff, also a Maori activist, recognised that book ownership could spark a love of books, which in turn could dramatically improve education and life prospects.
His program, which began in 1995, was adapted for a pilot program in northern Queensland and the Northern Territory in 2001.
It then received federal funding to operate in 50 outback New South Wales schools.
Books in Homes national program co-ordinator Kim Kingston says the program has helped many Aboriginal children in remote communities since expanding into the Kimberley and the Northern Territory following the federal government intervention.
"But we also see a huge need in cities," she says.
Since 2001, more than 1.2 million books have been given to more than 110,000 needy children from 300 schools around Australia.
These programs were mostly state funded but recent cost-cutting means some programs will not continue next year unless they can find corporate sponsorship.
"This is despite a federal government evaluation of the project in 2006 finding it was a resounding success," Ms Kingston says. "We are actively trying to get into the doors of corporate Australia in the hope of showing them the need for books in homes in low socio-economic-status communities. There is a huge need."
Victoria has 13 schools in the program, with more interested in joining.
Children's author Sally Gould, who also visits schools as part of the program, says she was shocked to realise St Brendan's could only afford to fund new books for prep students. After getting family and friends to help fund the program for a term, the former solicitor approached her previous employer, Allens, and was delighted when the law firm said it would sponsor the school.
Lawyer Emma Arbon says the firm's charity committee likes to support grassroots programs with an education focus. "The fact that there was that gap in the market where there are communities without access to reading material was very concerning to us."
The firm is also considering taking part in the reading mentoring program, in which staff read with students at school. "They do this for an hour or two a week with students where it is not happening at home," says St Brendan's acting principal, Nola Eldridge.
Students choose books from preview book packs. Scholastic Australia provides the books, working with Aboriginal publishers such as Magabala Books in Broome to meet the requirement of 25 per cent being by Aboriginal authors.
Ms Eldridge says the school's multicultural students particularly enjoy those books.
As part of the program, St Brendan's has invited parents and students to a book-giving assembly on Thursday. It is held in the early evening so parents can attend, and a shared meal afterwards boosts attendance.
Ms Eldridge says it is a non-threatening way to get parents to come along to the school. "It is a very happy, fun kind of occasion."
Thuy Le, a parent of Vietnamese background, says her three children are very excited about the book-giving ceremony. "It's wonderful, and it has really helped my children a lot. They love having authors read the books to them and they come home and talk about the books and want to read," she says.
"Ninety-five per cent of our families turn up. It's unbelievable," says literacy co-ordinator Kathy Scholtes.
The school also runs a family literacy reading program showing parents how to read with children at home. Ms Scholtes says that if a parent cannot speak English they are encouraged to talk in their own language about the cover, title, the pictures and the meaning.
Having lived in Australia for 18 years, Ms Le is able to read with her children for about 20 minutes at bedtime. "I'm really lucky because I have had some education," she says.
When her eldest daughter Teresa Phan went to school she knew very little English as the family speaks Vietnamese at home. Now 12, Teresa is the school captain. Her mother thinks the books program helped build her confidence to take on the role.
Kim Kippels, the family/school partnership convener from the Catholic Education Office, says the school had been looking for a way to improve its NAPLAN results. While that cannot be quantified yet, she says a survey found parents were talking more about books with their children.
She also understands why some parents do not. "There are those just surviving – and putting food on the table comes first."
Ms Kingston says the program has encouraged many parents to start learning English, and to learn to read. "Many of the refugee children are from families that have experienced trauma, and the parents understand that this is the way out of where they have come from."
Books in Homes has an incentive program in which students can earn extra books for good behaviour. It also runs a program for newborns to three-year-olds and another for preschool children.
More than 1700 families across Australia take part in the 0-3 program, and Ms Kingston wants many more to participate. "Research shows that 75 per cent of brain development occurs between birth and age three. Being read to from the day they are born helps children develop the essential pre-literacy skills they need for success in school," she says.


text:
"One of the most effective ways to communicate to and educate kids is peer to peer. That is why Sodexo chose to partner with Chef Remmi, Sodexo's Student Ambassador to Health & Wellness. Her passion and talent captivates parents, students and educators alike. She is an exceptional role model and a rising star in the culinary world."
Richard Hill
VP of Strategic Marketing Sodexo
"Chef Remmi is one of the most engaging and talented young chefs I have had the pleasure of working with in quite some time. She is fun, exciting and witty beyond her years. Her recipes are absolutely delicious and the way she brings them to life in her book is sure to capture the attention and imagination of young chefs everywhere."
Peter Steve, Jr.
Managing Partner & CEO Ideaworks Food Marketing
"It's never too early to make a commitment to living a healthy lifestyle and nobody's done more to get kids excited about this than Remmi. The Century Council was honored to name Remmi one of our 20 People to Watch, because she lights up the room with her enthusiasm and shows kids how they can turn their interest in good nutrition into action. She's one of a kind."
Ralph S. Blackman
President and CEO The Century Council
"Here at the world's biggest and best children's museum, Remmi's recipes and presentations courtesy of Sodexo are an inspiration to children, youth, parents and grandparents! We are thrilled that Remmi's recipes will be available for all!"
Dr. Jeffrey Patchen
President & CEO
The Children's Museum of Indianapolis
Be delighted every month with exciting and healthy Full-Size products from
nationally recognized brands that are perfect for the family, the class, or the workplace.


text:
Talk:Mldonkey - multi-network file-sharing client
having freelink 060801 for mips installed, i first had to find out, that mldonkey is part of debian unstable. managed to make unstable available to apt, but this is what i got installing mldonkey:
root@FL060801:~# apt-get install mldonkey-server Reading Package Lists... Done Building Dependency Tree... Done Some packages could not be installed. This may mean that you have requested an impossible situation or if you are using the unstable distribution that some required packages have not yet been created or been moved out of Incoming.
Since you only requested a single operation it is extremely likely that the package is simply not installable and a bug report against that package should be filed. The following information may help to resolve the situation:
The following packages have unmet dependencies:
mldonkey-server: Depends: libc6 (>= 2.3.5-1) but 2.3.2.ds1-22sarge3 is to be installed Depends: libgcc1 (>= 1:4.1.0) but 1:3.4.3-13 is to be installed Depends: libncurses5 (>= 5.4-5) but 5.4-4 is to be installed Depends: libstdc++6 (>= 4.1.0) but 3.4.3-13 is to be installed Depends: ocaml-base-nox-3.09.2
E: Broken packages
so first i have to upgrade the libs - right?
tried to compile it, (instaed of digging into dependencies) using the actual source 2.7.7: but after ./configure --enable-batch --disable-gui i got in the end:
- Checking system libraries.
- ...
- checking zlib (required)
- checking for inflate in -lz... no
- Zlib missing, did you install zlib and zlib-developer packages?
what next? install zlib first? so tried first a:
apt-cache search zlib apt-get install zlib1g apt-get install zlib1g-dev
./configure --enable-batch --disable-gui
and got at the end:
Now execute 'make' to start compiling. Good luck!
make seemed to run fine, but make install did not:
root@FL060801:/tmp/mldonkey/mldonkey-2.7.7# make install no -inline 10 -I src/utils/cdk -I src/daemon/chat -I src/gtk/chat ... -I src/networks/donkey -c src/utils/lib/fifo.ml make: no: Command not found make: *** [src/utils/lib/fifo.cmx] Error 127
searching http://www.mldonkey.org/forum showed up the same error in other context, but i could not find a solution to this yet ...
so i fetched mldonkey_mips-2.7.6.tar.gz and tried to install this:
root@FL060801:/mnt/hda/mp3/mldonkey/mldonkey-2.7.6# ./install.sh cp: cannot stat `wget': No such file or directory cp: cannot stat `diff': No such file or directory ln: creating symbolic link `/etc/rc.d/rc2.d/S99mldonkey' to `/etc/init.d/mldonkey.sh': No such file or directory
well, i know this was compiled for openlink, not for freelink ...so it's normal that the install.sh will not run ...
for the moment i think i will play around with ctorrent or rtorrent - maybe this much easier to install.


text:
Are you moving to the area? Need to know about Schools, Relocation or maybe a Buyers Guide? We can help you with everything, just click the image above and Start Packing!
Every home is sold WHEN priced correctly. Get your Free Home Valuation by a Professional REALTOR®.
Find out how to purchase Foreclosures and Distressed properties before everyone else.
Your Dream Home is closer than you think. Let us work for YOU and we will help you to realize your dreams. Your future is ONLY a click away.


text:
On the heels of their stunning ouster from the playoffs in the AL wild-card game, it's been a relatively subdued winter for the Rangers. They lost out to the Dodgers in their pursuit of Zack Greinke, their top free agent target, and failed to retain either Mike Napoli, who agreed to terms with the Red Sox but has yet to close the deal, or Josh Hamilton, who defected to the Angels. They didn't land either of their top trade targets, R.A. Dickey, whom the Mets sent to Toronto instead, or Justin Upton, who remains a Diamondback. For a team that has become accustomed to winning, both on the field and on the transaction wire, Texas is in a slump.
At this writing, the 2013 Rangers don't appear to be a finished product, but they are starting to come into focus. Last month, the team unloaded Michael Young on the Phillies and signed free agent A.J. Pierzynski. This past weekend, they added free agent Lance Berkman; both additions come via one-year deals. On Monday, general manager Jon Daniels announced that Ian Kinsler will remain at second base instead of switching to first base to open up a spot for top prospect Jurickson Profar. Barring further trades or injuries, both Profar and Mike Olt, their other highly-regarded position prospect, will start the year in the minors, where they can play every day instead of sitting on the big league bench.
The addition of Pierzynski simplifies the Rangers' catching situation, since Napoli had split time between catcher, first base and designated hitter during his two years in Texas, requiring frequent use of lesser-hitting backups such as Yorvit Torrealba and Geovany Soto. Texas signed the 36-year-old Pierzynski to a $7.5 million deal coming off a year in which he hit .278/.326/.501 with a career-high 27 homers for the White Sox. Though he's unlikely to retain that level of production, he's moving from one favorable hitting environment to another, and his durability — an average of 133 games a year over the past 11 seasons — will be an asset that should minimize the exposure of Soto, who was re-signed to a $2.75 million deal despite hitting just .198/.270/.343 for the Cubs and Rangers last year. With Napoli starting just 69 games behind the plate, the Rangers received just a .228/.312/.397 line from their catchers in 2012.
Berkman could potentially upgrade a DH slot that provided a relatively meager .265/.323/.432 line in 2012, with almost exactly half of those plate appearances coming from the departed Young and Napoli. The 36-year-old slugger is going to have to avoid the disabled list to do so, however. Coming off a stellar 2011 campaign in which he batted .301/.412/.547 with 31 homers for the Cardinals and helped defeat the Rangers in the World Series, he was limited to just 32 games in 2012, hitting .259/.381/.444 in 97 plate appearances and making three trips to the disabled list for leg problems, not including a September spent mostly on the shelf. He underwent two separate surgeries on his right knee that have left him with little cartilage in the joint, and not surprisingly, he was mulling retirement near the end of the season.
Texas signed Berkman to an $11 million deal — $10 million in salary plus a $12 million club option for 2014 that vests at 550 PA — slightly less than the $12 million he made last year, but still a pricey sum for a player who's likely to be confined to the DH role and who has averaged just 100 games and 1.9 Wins Above Replacement Player over the past three seasons. At a going rate of around $6 million per win, he's a break-even proposition if he meets that average, but as he's failed to do so in two of those three years, he carries significant risk — risk justified, perhaps, by the Rangers' status as contenders still in need of a few fixes.
As for Kinsler, he had initially agreed to move off second base for this season, but recently backtracked, telling Daniels he wasn't comfortable doing so at this stage of his career, with the GM respecting his wishes. Even so, the decision to keep Kinsler at the keystone has its pros and cons. Though he set career highs with 157 games and 731 plate appearances in 2012, he's coming off a down year in which he hit just .256/.326/.423, with the lowest on-base percentage of his career; his .255 True Average was 22 points below his career mark, and thanks to subpar defense (-5 Fielding Runs Above Average), he dropped from a career-high 5.6 WARP in 2011 to a career-low 0.9 in '12; other value metrics suggest average defense but still a steep dropoff from the previous year.
It's possible that Kinsler's 2012 showing was an aberration both at the plate and in the field; after all, this is player who had averaged 4.3 WARP and 11 FRAA over the previous five years. If this is the start of his decline phase, the timing is awful, as his five-year, $75 million extension has just taken effect. Moving him to first base might mitigate a defensive decline, but he would no longer be a significant asset offensively; his career .277 True Average is slightly below the historical major league average at his position.
Which isn't to say that there aren't benefits to moving Kinsler. The primary one would be to open up a spot for Profar, considered to be the top position prospect in the minors. As a 19-year-old, he hit .281/.368/.452 with 14 homers and 16 steals in 526 PA at Double-A Round Rock, and played nine games for the Rangers in September. Given the continued presence of Elvis Andrus at shortstop, a promotion would require Profar to switch from short to second base, where he saw duty in 30 games (including five in the majors) last year.
Such a move would also bump Mitch Moreland from regular first base duty. The 27-year-old lefty is himself a below-average hitter for a first baseman; in 2012 he hit .275/.321/.468 for a .264 True Average, and in three years and 1,042 plate appearances, he's at .267, 15 points below that of the major league average first basemen in that span. A typical season from Kinsler at the plate beats a typical season from Moreland, and would almost certainly be better than the .251/.301/.399 the Rangers collectively received from their first basemen (Moreland, Young, Napoli, Olt and Brandon Snyder) in 2012. For that matter, Olt, a 24-year-old third baseman who is blocked at his natural position by Adrian Beltre, could likely provide a significant upgrade given his showing at Round Rock (.288/.398/.579 with 28 homers) before a late-season stint with the Rangers.
Beyond the catching and DH upgrades, the Rangers still haven't done anything to their outfield to offset the loss of Hamilton to free agency. While his 2012 season was maddeningly inconsistent, the slugger's production (.285/.354/.577 with 43 homers in 148 games) is hardly trivial to replace. At this juncture, the Rangers have Leonys Martin and Craig Gentry as their top options in centerfield. Martin, a 24-year-old Cuban defector, lit up Triple-A pitching at a .359/.422/.610 clip, albeit in just 260 plate appearances; meanwhile he struggled in 52 PA in the majors. Gentry, a 29-year-old righty-swinging speedster, hit .304/.367/.392 in 269 PA for the Rangers; manager Ron Washington often used him off the bench as a late-game replacement for lefty David Murphy, sliding Hamilton from center to left. While that combination may make for a productive platoon — atop the lineup, rather than in the middle of it — the expectation that the 31-year-old Murphy can repeat his .304/.380/.479 showing may be a stretch. Murphy set slash-stat career highs across the board, and even hit a vastly out-of-character .347/.405/.440 in 84 PA against lefties, well above his career .266/.313/.361 line against them.
The addition of another power hitter would help the Rangers, and while they're known to covet the 25-year-old Upton, he's coming off a season in which he hit .280/.355/.430 with 17 homers and 18 stolen bases, solid but hardly exceptional numbers given the favorable hitting environment of Chase Field. Given the package of prospects it would take to obtain him, it makes more sense for the Rangers to focus on trading for the Marlins' Giancarlo Stanton, who's more than two years younger than Upton, and an even greater threat with the lumber; he hit .290/.361/.608 with 37 homers in 2012 despite playing in just 123 games due to in-season surgery to remove bone chips from his right knee. Upton, who has $38.5 million remaining on his contract over the next three years, offers cost certainty, whereas Stanton, who won't even become arbitration-eligible until next year, does not, but he does have the extra year of club control remaining. His youth and track record of consistency suggests he's a much greater investment for a nine-figure extension than either Hamilton or Upton.
As if they didn't have other concerns, the Rangers' rotation behind Yu Darvish remains in flux. Matt Harrison is coming off a strong season (3.29 ERA in 213 1/3 innings) but Derek Holland was roughed up for a 4.67 ERA and 1.6 homers per nine, and Alexi Ogando and Martin Perez, the presumptive fourth and fifth starters, combined for just 11 big league starts, with Ogando mainly working out of the bullpen and Perez spending most of the year in Triple-A. Colby Lewis just began throwing again following July 18 surgery to repair a torn flexor tendon, and isn't expected back until June, while Neftali Feliz, who underwent July Tommy John surgery, won't be back until late in the year and may be bullpen-bound once he is. Justin Grimm, a 24-year-old righty who split his season between Double-A, Triple-A and the majors, could figure into the equation as well, particularly if the team wants to avoid having three southpaws (Harrison, Holland and Perez) in the rotation. One way or another, it appears that the team could stand to flesh out the rotation with another proven starter.the majors' third-best record ranks among the game's best well under


text:
When it comes to Mac OS X, Apple has always had the luxury of not really having to care about piracy. Apple makes most of its money via hardware, and since Mac OS X only runs on Apple machines (technically), even if you do pirate your copy, you already gave Apple the big bucks when you bought your Mac.
The end result of this is that Apple never had to put any Genuine Advantage stuff or serial key mechanisms into its client operating systems. Windows, on the other hand, does have this stuff as an integral part of the operating system, since Microsoft doesn't have a hardware division to fall back on.
So, when it comes to the cheap Snow Leopard upgrade, there are no checks or safeguards built into the operating system, and you can buy one upgrade copy, and install it on as many machines as you want - whether they be Leopard or Tiger.
The EULA, however, does not allow you to. The EULA which comes with the Snow Leopard upgrade disk limits you to one machine, and only Leopard is eligible for an upgrade. So, this raises the question: how do you feel about this? Will you upgrade any remaining Tiger machines you have? Will you upgrade several machines using the same copy? Do you actually care about any EULA at all?


text:
The OSC Starter Kit provides a suite of programs to help you access the OSC High Performance Computing (HPC) systems securely and easily from your Windows computer.
The starter kit has been depricated. Please either use OnDemand, or install your own clients. Suggestions are found on the Getting Connected page.
- Drag-and-drop file transfers to and from the HPC shared filesystem.
- One-click terminal sessions with limited support for graphical applications.
- Links to helpful OSC websites, including our account management and social networking portal, ARMSTRONG.
Download the OSC Starter Kit (37 MB)
System Requirements. The OSC Starter Kit requires a computer running Windows XP or later with 50 MB of free disk space.
Usage Notes.
- When starting a terminal session, you will be prompted first for your username, then for your password. Both of these boxes will obscure your input with dots, so be sure to type carefully.
- Some menu options in WinSCP, the bundled file transfer program, suggest that you can execute commands on the remote server. Please do not use these features, as this server is intended for file transfer only.
- Support for graphical applications is currently limited. You may experience significant variations in responsiveness depending on the speed of your Internet connection.
- If you experience any difficulties installing or using the Starter Kit, please contact us at firstname.lastname@example.com.


text:
Bonita Gamble, 89
Bonita E. Gamble, 89, of Columbia City, passed away at 12:13 p.m. Friday, Nov. 23, 2012, at Parkview Whitley Hospital, Columbia City. Born Jan. 9, 1923, in Whitley County, she was the daughter of Homer J. and Hulda E. (Auer) Ummel.She was a lifetime resident of Columbia City and graduated from Washington Center High School with the Class of 1941. On June 2, 1942, she married Gerald E. Gamble at Zion Lutheran Church. She worked a few years with G.E in Fort Wayne and was the secretary for her family business, G & J Machine & Tool. She was a member of Eberhard Lutheran Church, Columbia City.Survivors include her six children, Gary L. Gamble of Houston, TX, Jana L. Baker of Columbia City, Janelle S. (James S.) Gamble of Thailand, Gregory A. Gamble of Columbia City, Galen D. Gamble of Columbia City, and Janine K. (Lane) Pressler of Columbia City; one sister, Thelma Jean (Joe) Geist of South Whitley; eight grandchildren; three stepgrandchildren; five great-grandchildren and five stepgreat-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her parents; husband, Gerald E. Gamble; son-in-law, John Baker; daughter-in-law, Patti Gamble; great-grandson, Justin Wilcoxson, and brother, John H. Ummel.Visitation was held Sunday from 3 to 6 p.m. at DeMoney-Grimes Countryside Park Funeral Home, 600 Countryside Dr., Columbia City. The funeral services were held at 10 a.m. today at Eberhard Lutheran Church, with one hour of visitation prior to the service. Pastor Alice Smith officiated. The burial followed in the Eberhard Cemetery. Memorial gifts may be given in Mrs. Gamble's memory to Eberhard Lutheran Church or grandson Garet Gamble. Envelopes will be available at the funeral home. To send online condolences, visit www.demoneygrimes.com.


text:
ARM announces that the source code for its sample implementation of OpenMAX DL (Development Layer) software library, designed to enable rapid implementation and seamless portability of video, image and audio codecs (encoders/decoders), is freely available for download from the company's website. The ARM® OpenMAX DL software library supports the OpenMAX DL Application Programming Interface (API) specification, developed by the Khronos Group.
The Khronos OpenMAX DL API requires a software library that implements the functions it specifies. ARM's sample OpenMAX DL software library provides source code written in C for easy platform portability and code readability. ARM's optimized libraries will be hand-coded in assembly and designed to achieve maximum performance. Now codec porting to new platforms is as simple as swapping in the new DL library.
The OpenMAX DL software library adds significant value to OEMs, ODMs and codec and middle providers by improving time-to-market for advanced codecs, reducing software development costs and enabling silicon providers to offer an open-standards-based platform for optimized codec development.
ARM plans to create a series of highly optimized libraries including an implementation that will take full advantage of the ARMv6 architecture found in the ARM11™ family and an implementation for the NEON™ signal processing technology found in the Cortex™-A8 processor.
ARM's sample OpenMAX DL software library is freely available for download at: http://www.arm.com/products/esd/openmax_home.html.
The OpenMAX DL API specification is freely available from the Khronos Group at: http://www.khronos.org/openmax/.
About ARM
ARM designs the technology that lies at the heart of advanced digital products, from wireless, networking and consumer entertainment solutions to imaging, automotive, security and storage devices. ARM's comprehensive product offering includes 16/32-bit RISC microprocessors, data engines, graphics processors, digital libraries, embedded memories, peripherals, software and development tools, as well as analog functions and high-speed connectivity products. Combined with the company's broad Partner community, they provide a total system solution that offers a fast, reliable path to market for leading electronics companies. More information on ARM is available at http://www.arm.com.
ARM is a registered trademark of ARM Limited. ARM11, NEON and Cortex are trademarks of ARM Limited. Artisan Components and Artisan are registered trademarks of ARM Physical IP, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of ARM. All other brands or product names are the property of their respective holders. "ARM" is used to represent ARM Holdings plc; its operating company ARM Limited; and the regional subsidiaries ARM INC.; ARM KK; ARM Korea Ltd.; ARM Taiwan; ARM France SAS; ARM Consulting (Shanghai) Co. Ltd.; ARM Belgium N.V.; AXYS Design Automation Inc.; AXYS GmbH; ARM Embedded Solutions Pvt. Ltd.; and ARM Physical IP, Inc.; and ARM Norway AS.
|Michelle Spencer
+44 1628 427780
|Claudia Natalia
+1 408 548 3172
|Nandita Geerdink
Text 100
+ 1 415 593 8457


text: Laws and Penalties: Concerns over growing illegal AAS abuse by teenagers, and many of the just discussed long-term effects, led Congress in 1991 to place the whole AAS class of drugs into Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA). Under this legislation, AAS are defined as any drug or hormonal substance, chemically and pharmacologically related to T (other than estrogens, progestins, and corticosteroids) that promotes muscle growth. The possession or sale of AAS without a valid prescription is illegal. Since 1991, simple possession of illegally obtained AAS carry a maximum penalty of one year in prison and a minimum $1,000 fine if this is an individual's first drug offense. The maximum penalty for trafficking (selling or possessing enough to be suspected of selling) is five years in prison and a fine of $250,000 if this is the individual's first felony drug offense. If this is the second felony drug offense, the maximum period of imprisonment and the maximum fine both double. While the above listed penalties are for federal offenses, individual states have also implemented fines and penalties for illegal use of AAS. State executive offices have also recognized the seriousness of AAS abuse and other drugs of abuse in schools. For example, the State of Virginia enacted a law that will allow student drug testing as a legitimate school drug prevention program (48, 49).


text:
Ever since Peter got his first camera at the age of 12 he got addicted to photography. Working in the airline industry allowed Peter to travel the world and capture his experiences in pictures. In 2008 Peter turned his hobby into a profession when taking over and leading a photo tour business in Germany and Switzerland.
I like the size, flexibility and the image quality of the X Camera products. I use it on all my portrait, street photography and reportage tours. These cameras have become part of my day to day business.


text:
Wale and Jerry Seinfeld Are Making an Album About Nothing
Because Wale is Jessica Seinfeld's favorite rapper.
The video below explains it more thoroughly — and includes amusing "IDK" shrugs from Seinfeld himself — but here is the straightforward version: Wale is making the jump from Seinfeld-inspired mixtapes to albums featuring actual Jerry Seinfeld. Says Jerry (live from the studio), "[Wale] wanted me to do something with him. I didn't understand it, but he did." And since Wale is apparently Jessica Seinfeld's favorite rapper, her husband said yes. "I do words." Not wrong, technically.


text:
Scholarships 2018
Learn about our new scholarships to study at Murdoch in 2018 - and whether you could be eligible to apply.
Undergraduate Students
Study Business, Media or Information Technology at Murdoch.
Postgraduate Students
Study with renowned academics when you start one of our globally connected postgraduate courses in 2018.
Message from the Dean
Welcome to Murdoch University in Dubai, UAE. We are one of Australia's leading universities in Dubai, and a place where staff and students from all over the world come together to make a difference. We're proud of our international reputation for excellence in teaching, research and student satisfaction.
Murdoch University in Dubai is located in the heart of the impressive Dubai International Academic City. Established in 2007, we are a branch campus of Murdoch University, one of Australia's leading emerging universities. Our home campus in Perth, Western Australia, has more than 22,000 students and 2,500 staff from across almost 100 different countries, studying in over 200 undergraduate and postgraduate courses or majors, over a comprehensive range of disciplines and professions. Murdoch has earned an international reputation for the quality of its teaching and research over the past 35 years, as it has grown and matured. In 2014, Murdoch stands 68th in the Times Higher Education ranking of the world's top 200 universities under 50 years old, evidence of our commitment to exceptional teaching and learning for students and of our high-quality research.
At Murdoch Dubai you will earn a fully accredited Australian degree with its associated international recognition. All our programs are accredited by the Tertiary Education Quality Standards Agency (TEQSA) in Australia and locally authorized by the Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA). The same transferable standards apply regardless of whether you are studying in Perth, in Dubai or one of our other international or regional campuses. Our students have the option to transfer credits earned across our network of campuses on a short or long-term basis, for a truly international learning experience.
We place great emphasis on the quality of our students' study and university experience. We pride ourselves on the quality of our teaching and curriculum content and our multicultural ethos. With over 550 students, taught by international faculty from around the world, Murdoch University Dubai is a stimulating and vibrant place to learn. We provide excellent facilities to our students: cutting-edge technology, modern teaching spaces and committed student learning support, backed by a dedicated and globally educated faculty. We offer a range of undergraduate and graduate degree programs. At the undergraduate level, we offer courses in Business (finance, management, and marketing), Information Technology (computer science and business information systems) and Media and Communications (journalism, public relations, and screen production). At the postgraduate level, we offer a Master of Business Administration and a Master of Education. Students not qualifying for direct entry and seeking an alternative pathway into university can consider completing our associated foundation programme. This caters to the needs of high school, international and mature students wishing to gain entry into a university degree.
We constantly strive to meet the unique challenges that face students in the UAE as they look to assume leadership roles in the region and across the world. All our graduates are prepared with the vital communication and creative thinking skills, with deep practical knowledge in their subject, and with an awareness of global perspectives. They are articulate and analytically-minded, with the confidence to take a place on the global stage. It is my pleasure and privilege to welcome you to Murdoch University in Dubai. Our dedicated team of staff looks forward to supporting you in your exciting journey of learning and exploration.
Dr James Trotter, Dean and Academic President


text:
All-Day Grilled Cheese
Little Market Brasserie 10 E. Delaware Place 312-640-8141
Celebrate—drum roll, please—National Grilled Cheese Month with an All-Day Grilled Cheese sandwich made with fried egg, cheddar cheese, bacon, avocado and sriracha sauce and served with fries ($12.95). It arrives with a free house-made soda in your choice of flavors such as meyer lemon sour and smoked salted cream soda. 6:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m.; 5 p.m.-midnight.


text:
Community Participation Program
Jump to the 2017-2019 Community Participation Program guidelines and application materials
2014-16 Community Participation Program
2016 Annual Report Guide (.doc)
2015 Annual Report Guide (.doc)
2014 Annual Reports the 2013 Annual Reports and the 2014-16 Submissions
On August 2, 2013, the Minneapolis City Council approved the three-year allocations for the Community Participation Program for the years 2014 to 2016. Community Participation Program Funds can be used to support your neighborhood organization's community engagement activities and related administrative expenses, as well as to funding work on priorities identified in a Neighborhood Priority Plan. Organizations that represent more than one neighborhood may apply for funding for all of the neighborhoods it represents.
1. Community Participation Program Guidelines
2. 2014-2016 Allocation Schedule
3. 2014-2016 CPP Submission Template
4. 2013 Annual Report Guide (doc.) and 2014 Annual Report Guide (doc.)
5. Payment Request Form (.xls)
We will accept and review submissions for the 2014-2016 funding cycle starting Monday, August 26, 2013. Neighborhood organization submissions should be submitted by Friday, November 15, 2013 to have contracts completed before January 2014.Your proposal should include:
• Your organization's name and contact information;
• A narrative submission (see page 6, Section IV of the Guidelines);
• A budget (see Appendix D of the Guidelines). If you need help preparing a budget, please call NCR staff at (612) 673-3737;
• An organization wide budget for 2014.
• A copy of your current bylaws, if revised since your last submission;
• Date of board approval of proposal.
Please submit an editable electronic version of your Community Participation Plan to NCR by email to [email protected] (electronic is preferred), or a hard copy by mail to:
Neighborhood and Community Relations
Crown Roller Mill, Suite 425
105 5th Avenue South
Minneapolis, MN 55401
Proposals will be reviewed by NCR staff and a site visit may be scheduled as necessary or on request of the neighborhood organization. When preparing your submission for funding, please be aware of some of the following:
• Your submission will be for a three-year allocation.
• Plan on budgeting no more than 1/3 of your allocation in any one year. Unused funds in any year will rollover to the next year.
• We will prepare and renew contracts on an annual basis. Each neighborhood will have a single Community Participation Program contract for the three-year allocation.
• You may set aside some of your CPP allocation for neighborhood priorities identified in a neighborhood priority plan. We will reserve these funds for projects related to your neighborhood priority plan, rather than adding them immediately to your Community Participation Program contract.
• Make sure your annual reports for 2011 and 2012 are turned in to NCR. See excellent write-ups of some of the amazing work done by neighborhood leaders like you across the city at:http://www.minneapolismn.gov/ncr/programs/cpp/WCMS1P-113007.
• NCR staff can help you with ideas for reaching under-engaged communities. We encourage you to meet with them prior to preparing your funding submission.
Please call your Neighborhood Support Specialist at NCR with any questions.
The City of Minneapolis invites and encourages participation by every resident to each program, service and event within our city. Should you require an accommodation in order for you to fully participate, or should you require this document in a different format, please let us know by contacting 612-673-3737.
Last updated Jun 1, 2017


text:
Better Deal Stations
Lesson 16 of 21
Objective: SWBAT: • Use multiplication and division to solve problems involving equivalent rates. • Apply different strategies for explaining comparisons between quantities.
Big Idea: What is the better deal? How do you know? How do stores try to trick you? Students work in groups to determine the better deal.
Do Now
See my Do Now in my Strategy folder that explains my beginning of class routines.
Often, I create do nows that have problems that connect to the task that students will be working on that day. Here, I want students to review their measurement conversions. I have added quarts and gallons, which students will need later in the lesson.
Students check their answers and make sure their do now has the correct facts.
Resources (3)
I want students to be able to compare deals, but I also want students to be aware of the tricks that some stores use to try to fool them. The more students know the more they will be able to make informed decisions. I comparison shop all of the time! I have to use math to figure out the better deal, and every penny counts. I also use math to figure out which coupons are better than others. I want students to connect to this lesson and see how it can help them in their own lives.
If I have extra time, I ask students to share out a time when they compared prices on an item. How did you get the information? Was it worth the time and effort?
Resources (1)
Resources (1)
Better Deal Stations
- Before this lesson, I create groups. If students are still struggling with decimal operations, I will allow them to use a calculator during this lesson. They still need to set up and label the rates, but using a calculator will allow them to access the problem.
- Before the lesson, I set up stations around the room. Each station has copies of that particular deal. I will have some duplicate stations, so groups who are ready to move on can move on.
I ask students to share out the strategies they used in the State Fair lesson to figure out the better deal. I list these strategies on the board so students can reference them later. I review expectations for the day and students move into groups. I know that not all groups will complete all stations and this is okay. The important part is that groups are applying strategies in a systematic way and are developing ways to justify their answers to each other. I stress to students that they must show their work in order to convince me they have found the better deal.
Students are engaging in MP1: Make sense of problems and persevere in solving them, MP2: Reason abstractly and quantitatively, and MP6: Attend to precision.
As students work, I walk around to monitor student progress.
If students are struggling, I may ask one or more of the following questions:
- What do you know?
- What do you need to know?
- How can we compare two different rates?
- How will we know which one is the better deal?
- How should we round our answer?
If students are in need of extension, I may ask one or more of the following questions:
- What is the unit rate for each product? (There are 2 unit rates, for example price per ounce or number of ounces per dollar. The price per ounce/pound/gallon is commonly displayed in grocery stores)
- When might someone knowingly choose the product that is more expensive?
- A pack of twelve 12-ounce cans of Polar raspberry lime seltzer is $4.99. How does that compare to the other seltzer prices?
Resources (2)
Closure and Ticket to Go
For Closure I call on groups to share what they found to be the better deal as well as how they figured it out. I am excited to see what strategies students use. The Gatorade problem is interesting because when you round your calculation, both products have the same cost per ounce. What are the advantages of one of the packages of Gatorade over the other? Each of the deals has interesting questions, so I will let groups decide what they want to talk about. Students are engaging in MP3: Construct viable arguments and critique the reasoning of others.
After groups share, I talk to students about unit prices. I show them some of the pictures of the products with their unit prices. This is a great way to quickly compare deals in the store. You just have to make sure that the unit prices you are comparing have the same units (not price per pound vs. price per ounce).
I pass out the Ticket to Go and the HW Better Deal.


text:
Push a Button, Change the World
Do "click to give" sites actually do good?
Do you have a real-life do-gooding dilemma? Please send it to email@example.com and Patty and Sandy will try to answer it.
Dear Patty and Sandy,
Are "click to give" sites legitimate? If so, why don't you hear stories about people they have benefited?
For those of you who don't know what Ashleigh's talking about, "click to give" sites allow individuals to "donate" money by going online and clicking a button. The click leads you to a page with ads, and the advertiser gives money (based on the number of clicks) directly to a charity designated by the site. If you think it sounds too good to be true, you may be right.
The first question is whether your clicks actually lead to donations. One of the most notable "click to give" pages, the Hunger Site, says that user clicks led to more than 290 tons of food donated last month (4,539,828 clicks). Their early success led to the creation of several other sites, including the Breast Cancer Site, where user clicks led to 203.9 free mammograms in March (7,842,148 clicks). The apparent ease of fundraising in this way has led to a flood of copy cats offering clickable opportunities to save animals, oceans, and children. While the better-known sites ensure that their sponsors donate 100 percent of revenues to trustworthy charities, smaller sites may not follow the same guidelines.
I found one business that offers to help charities set up their own sites but only promises them up to 50 percent of the ad revenue generated. Presumably, the business keeps the remainder. Other fledgling sites have trouble directing their ad revenues to effective organizations. FreePoverty, a site created to benefit water distribution efforts, talks explicitly about its difficulty finding a partner organization on its FAQ page: "Due to some unforeseen issues with the organization we previously donated our revenues to … we are now looking for a decent non-profit organization to collaborate with FreePoverty and its users."
Even though each click may amount to only a few pennies, I would make the most of them by using CharityUSA's sites (five in total, including both the Hunger Site and the Breast Cancer Site), which donate 100 percent of the corporate sponsor's money to respected charities such as Feeding America (formerly America's Second Harvest) and Mercy Corps. If you have more time to kill, or rusty vocabulary skills, try FreeRice, an educational game site run by the U.N.World Food Program and Harvard's Berkman Center that gives 10 grains of rice to the UNWFP for every question you answer correctly. They've donated more than 62 billion grains of rice in less than two years. Procrastination has never felt so worthwhile.
The second and more complicated question is whether the painlessness of "donating" on these sites is ultimately detrimental to the causes they support. Are people going to "click to give" sites in lieu of taking other action? Is clicking keeping them from actually donating money? My guess is no, but it's a real concern. Even a religious clicker would only net about $10 a year for any given site. They count you only once per day. Tackling any of these issues is going to take a lot more than that.
Ashleigh, "click to give" sites might be the best example of slacktivism: easy and painless acts that allow us to feel we are doing our part to make the world a better place with the least possible mental, physical, or financial exertion. While it's encouraging to see so much creativity being put toward the myriad ways we can change the world without getting up off the couch, I strongly encourage everyone using "click to give" to remember Gandhi's quote: "We must become the change we wish to see in the world." Simply clicking may provide modest incremental benefit, but it isn't going to get us the world we wish to see. You're not off the hook.
Do you have a real-life do-gooding dilemma? Please send it to firstname.lastname@example.com and Patty and Sandy will try to answer it.
In our ongoing effort to do better ourselves, we're donating 25 percent of the proceeds from this column to ONE.org—an organization committed to raising public awareness about the issues of global poverty, hunger, and disease and the efforts to fight such problems in the world's poorest countries.


text:
Automata and Mechanical Toys
Click to go to the Automata main page
This automata site introduces you to the world of Automata and is packed with information to help you make your own working models from wood, card and metal. Sometimes referred to as Mechanical Toys or Kinetic Art, they are marvelous small machines that utilize most of the mechanical processes which can be found in almost every modern machine employing cams, gears, ratchets and cranks.
Designing and making automata is an exciting hobby, covering a range of skills and processes from Art, Engineering and Science, through to Craft Skills involving card, wood and metal. Whether you are working on a school project or looking to start making automata for a hobby this site will help you. You can also now buy on-line"How to design and make Automata" which can be download or get it on a CD-ROM. It will help Teachers and Students learning Design and Technology Key Stage 3 and GCSE D&T as well as anyone interested in working with wood and making their own Automaton.
We are now pleased to be able to offer our latest Publication: "How to Design and make Simple Automata". This book makes use of card, paper, and wood. It is ideal for anyone interested in making their own automata, but haven't got much making experience. You will find loads of ideas for using household materials that can be turned into fantastic Automata and mechanical toys. It also contains the plans to make 6 exciting models using cams and cranks, all out of thin card. This book is aimed at helping Teachers covering Key Stage 2 QCA Units 3c moving monsters, 5c moving toys & 6c Fairground rides But will make for a great start for anyone interested in making automata and mechanical toys as a hobby.
We now have a fantastic interactive CD-ROM's that show you how mechanisms, automata and mechanical toys work.
"How to Design and Make Automata Mechanisms and Mechanical Toys" CD-ROM covers Design and Technology key stage 3 and 4, but again this is a great place to start if you want get into making them. It represents great value as it combines both books and comes with an hour of video examples of the automata, exploring how they work with great close ups and explanations of the mechanisms.